Seoul city starts providing allowances to young job seekers

original article

#unemployment #basic_income #Seoul_city #MoWH_opposing

SEOUL, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) — The Seoul city government started a controversial program that provides allowances to thousands of young job seekers Wednesday, which it said aims to help people maintain basic living standards while they try to find work.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it has selected a total of 3,000 applicants and will provide them with 500,000 won (US$448) per month, for up to six months.

The plan, which has been opposed by the central government, is designed to support people from ages 19 to 29, who have lived in the capital city for a year or more and work less than 30 hours a week. Enrolled students cannot apply for the program.

The city government said it has already provided the allowance to 2,831 applicants, who have signed agreements with the metropolitan government, earlier on Wednesday.

More than 6,000 people submitted applications in July. The city government said the final list is based on their income level, period of unemployment and whether they have families to support.

The metropolitan government has allocated some 9 billion won to test run the plan this year before expanding it in the years to come.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare, meanwhile, immediately issued a correction order to revoke the city government’s decision.

The ministry stressed that the allowance plan does not root out the fundamental cause of the high unemployment rate and that it will only lead to more side effects down the line, including serious moral hazards among young job seekers.

“There is no safeguard to keep tabs on where people spend the free handouts,” a government source said.

The unemployment rate for young people aged from 15 to 29 reached 10.3 percent last month, up from May’s 9.7 percent, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea.

Students study at a local college library in Seoul on July 13, 2016, following the high unemployment rate for young adults in the country amid a protracted economic slowdown. The unemployment rate for young people, aged from 15 to 29, reached 10.3 percent last month, up from May’s 9.7 percent, according to the report compiled by Statistics Korea. (Yonhap)

Nurse at Samsung hospital diagnosed with tuberculosis

#tuberculosis #first_in_OECD_countries #nosocomial_infection #K-CDC #testing_all_Koreans_twice_lifetime #seriously??

A nurse working at a pediatric unit at one of the major general hospitals in Seoul has been diagnosed with tuberculosis, just weeks after another TB case was reported among nurses at a different hospital in the city, raising concerns over the nation’s control of the disease.

According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the 27-year-old nurse was diagnosed with the disease Monday during a regular health examination provided by her employer — the Samsung Medical Center in southern Seoul.

Prior to the diagnosis, she had been working at a pediatric unit at the hospital, specifically caring for patients with blood cancers. A total of 86 children who have been treated at the unit, as well as 43 health care workers who spent time with the nurse, are being tested for TB, the KCDC said. So far, 37 of the 43 health care workers have tested negative. Results are still pending for the other six.

Last month, a 32-year-old nurse, who was also working at a pediatric unit at the Ewha Womans University Medical Center, was diagnosed with TB through a regular health checkup. She had been working at the hospital’s intensive care unit for newborns. Following her diagnosis, 166 babies and 50 health care workers were tested.

Among them, two infants were diagnosed with latent TB — a condition in which the TB bacteria is in the body but inactive and causing no symptoms. Without treatment, about 5 to 10 percent of latent TB patients are known to develop TB at some point in their lives.

South Korea has recently seen a number of TB cases at facilities with a large number of people, such as schools and postpartum centers. Last year, TB cases were reported in 974 schools, 332 military bases and 91 day care centers and postpartum care facilities.

To tackle the issue, the Health Ministry announced in March that all Koreans would be required to be tested for latent TB at least twice in their lifetime, at age 15 and 40, starting next year.

TB treatments became free for all patients in Korea last month. South Korea currently has the highest incidence rate of TB among nations in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, partly due to the lack of epidemiological research of the disease since the 1950-53 Korean War.

Those who have visited the Samsung Medical Center and would like to get tested for TB can contact the hospital at (02) 3410-2227 or the state-run health center in southern Seoul at (02) 3423-7133.

What the gov’t won’t say about the electromagnetic waves emitted by THAAD (hankyoreh)

[Analysis] What the gov’t won’t say about the electromagnetic waves emitted by THAAD

#THAAD #health_risk #safety #Korea

For now, the government is claiming that the waves pose no health risk to residents, but further examination is needed

RF electromagnetic radiation can cause serious burns and internal injury).

Following the South Korean government’s sudden announcement earlier this month of the deployment site for the US military’s THAAD missile defense system, there has been a fierce debate about the electromagnetic waves emitted by the THAAD radar.While the government has used a variety of strategies in a public relations campaign designed to convince residents of Seongju County that the electromagnetic waves are of no concern, this does not appear to be much consolation for the people who will have the radar base in their backyards.Electromagnetic waves move at the speed of light during the regular oscillation of electric fields and magnetic fields. The word “electromagnetic wave” has probably reminded many people of the harmful ELF (extremely low frequency) electromagnetic waves that are produced by power lines and household appliances such as electric blankets and televisions. But electromagnetic waves are in fact an extensive category including the various frequencies used in broadcasting and telecommunications and even sunlight.THAAD’s eye is the AN/TPY-2(TM) radar, which identifies targets by shooting a beam of electromagnetic waves into the area under observation and detecting any waves that bounce back.These electromagnetic waves are X-band microwaves with a frequency of 8 to 12 GHz (gigahertz) and a wavelength of 2.5 to 3.75 cm. The X-band falls between the C-band (4-8 GHz) and the Ku-band (12-18 GHz), as defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).The X-band is used around the world not only by military radars but also by radars on civilian vessels, radars for meteorological observations, the radar guns that police point at speeding cars and ham radio operators.　Experts are reluctant to answer questions about safetyThe microwaves created in the THAAD radar’s electromagnetic wave generator pass through an amplifier and are then released toward the target area through the antenna. While data has not been made public about the output of the antenna that determines the strength of the radar’s electromagnetic waves, it must be very strong, given THAAD’s detection range.The US army’s instruction manual for the AN/TPY-2(FBM) states that the radar’s range for detecting an enemy missile prior to the intermediate stage of its trajectory is at least 1,000km. The AN/TPY-2(FBM) and the AN/TPY-2(TM) radars have the same hardware, and only their software is different, the manual explains.

A Ministry of National Defense cartoon explaining the THAAD missile defense system

The South Korean government has established and regulates human exposure levels in regard to microwaves and other electromagnetic waves.The US army’s instruction manual for the AN/TPY-2(FBM) radar states that radiation from the electromagnetic waves emitted from the radar antenna can cause severe burns and internal injuries, and the army has declared 100 meters in front of the THAAD radar deployed in Guam to be off-limits.The general sense that the microwaves emitted by the radar could be harmful to the human body is not being debated. The question is what effect will be had on Seongju residents by the electromagnetic waves that will be emitted at a specific strength from the top of one particular hill.As of July 24, the Hankyoreh had managed to get in touch with five of the seven experts who co-authored the book “Radar Engineering and the Use of Electronic Warfare” (published by the Korean Institute of Electromagnetic Engineering and Science), and all five of these experts answered this question by noting that there was not enough information to make a judgment.While none of the experts said the radar would have an effect and some of them predicted that it would not have an effect, all of them avoided categorical language.“We only know that the radar uses the X-band without knowing anything about the pattern of the antenna or about its output capacity. That’s why no scientist can speak with confidence,” said Myeong Ro-hun, a professor of electrical and electronic engineering at KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology).“If the measurement and simulation values from the place where [the radio] is actually being operated are correct, we have to trust the values of the simulation that they performed with those materials in the South Korean terrain. If the resulting values are lower than international accepted levels, we ought to conclude that it‘s safe,” said Park Dong-cheol, a professor of electrical engineering and information technology at Chungnam National University. The results of such an analysis have never been made public.These experts all held the view that the effect the electromagnetic waves will have on the area near the radar can vary substantially with the antenna output, the radiation pattern and the angle of orientation.This caveat means that the South Korean Defense Ministry’s measurement of the electromagnetic waves emitted from the THAAD radar on Guam – which were supposedly just 0.007% of the 10w/ square meter maximum tolerated for the human body – should not be treated as very significant. No information was released or reviewed about the output or angle of the electromagnetic beam that the radar was emitting at the time of measurement.The effect of electromagnetic waves on the human body is a question that is even more difficult to answer. In order to properly assess the effect on the human body, it would be necessary to consider a variety of levels of exposure and the various qualities of the subjects being exposed. Even electromagnetic waves that would have a negligible effect on the average individual could be dangerous for embryos or fetuses that are undergoing cellular division in the reproductive system or the womb. But scientists are only now learning about the effect that electromagnetic waves from mobile phones have on the brain and other organs.The two main pieces of evidence that the Defense Ministry has offered to support its categorical statement that the THAAD radar that will be deployed at Seongju will not have an effect on the locals are either incorrect or disregard half of the facts.The Ministry has stated that the difference in elevation between the planned radar installation and the Seongju downtown area is 400 meters. Since the radar will be shooting waves into the sky from such a high place, the Ministry has said, there is no reason to worry.But in fact, the actual elevation of the hill that the radar is supposed to be installed on is 383.4 meters in elevation above sea level. The Ministry‘s claims would suggest that the Seongju downtown would be underwater. Considering that Seongju downtown is located at an elevation of 44.5 meters, the actual difference in elevation because the two points is 61 meters less than the Ministry claimed.　Electromagnetic waves also affect surrounding areaAnother important piece of evidence offered by the Ministry of National Defense in claiming the electromagnetic waves will have no impact is the strongly straight-line nature of the radar waves. The argument is that residents should not worry even if the waves from the radar are passing directly overhead, since they would merely move straight forward without scattering. But a property of waves emitted by an antenna is that they radiate to the surrounding area before moving straight ahead. Even a directional radar antenna designed to only send waves in the target direction will inevitably radiate some electromagnetic waves to additional minor lobes such as side lobes and back lobes rather than in the intended direction (the main lobe).“Because the level is small, a decision should be made on whether it’s a meaningful level, but there are always side lobes and back lobes, and it‘s impossible to get rid of them 100%,” said Park Dong-cheol. “Engineers can only work on reducing it once it approaches permissible levels.”With the government offering only half an explanation – emphasizing the straight-line nature of the electromagnetic waves while ignoring their radiation properties – the residents’ continued apprehensions appear natural.In response to the continued controversy over the THAAD radar waves‘ safety, the Ministry of National Defense pledged to relocate the radar and conduct an after-the-fact environment impact assessment once it is in place. The after-the-fact procedure is part of a formal environmental impact assessment according to the Environment Impact Assessment Act that is not conducted in smaller-scale assessments. Ordinary assessments also require the collecting of resident opinions. The question for many now is how the ministry plans to honor its own assessment pledge.By Kim Jeong-soo, senior staff writer

Aid groups voice criticism of government’s new overseas aid plan(Hankyoreh)

Aid groups voice criticism of government’s new overseas aid plan

#Korea_Aid #Park_Guen_hye #ODA_Watch

New model for developmental aid for Africa is a food truck filled with Bibimbab?????? Seriously?

President Park Geun-hye and Kenyan first lady Margaret Kenyatta talk to the cooks at a Korea Aid test event in Nairobi, May 31. (Yonhap News)

The Korea Aid program, heavily publicized by the government as a “new South Korean model of official development assistance (ODA)” with President Park Geun-hye’s recent Africa visit, is running into fierce objections from groups involved in international development assistance efforts.While Seoul has cited the project as one of the top three results of Park’s visit, the groups are calling for an immediate end to what they have called “a mere show to promote South Korea rather than real aid.”An investigation by the Hankyoreh on June 3 showed that Korea Aid was not included in the administration’s general implementation plan for 2016-17 international development assistance as recently as May. Many critics are now saying the project was instead clapped together in time for Park’s tour.The basis for the Korea Aid program was reported to be an idea that Park herself presented earlier this year.A joint press release on May 25 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (MCST), the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (MAFRA), and the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) promoted Korea Aid as a “mobile development assistance project using vehicles for public health, food, and culture” as part of an effort to “increase development assistance in Africa, which has many of [the world’s] poorest countries and poorest populations.”The administration described Korea Aid as a “new South Korean development assistance model” combining development assistance with public health, food, and culture elements included alongside visiting services.Seoul previously attempted a test run of Korea Aid in which ten vehicles were sent to each of the three countries visited by Park: Ethiopia, Uganda, and Kenya. The vehicles included three related to public health (one check-up vehicle and two ambulances), four for food (three food trucks and one refrigerated truck), one video truck for culture, and two support vehicles. Food primarily consisted of bibimbap(mixed rice and vegetables) and other rice dishes, while videos for the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, K-Pop, and breakdancing were shown by culture vehicles and fetal imaging and health kits were provided for public health.At a special talk before the African Union on May 27, Park described Korea Aid as “a new model of development assistance that allows us to connect and communicate with Africa’s people through our hearts.” She also visited to observe the project’s first implementation on the ground in the three countries. The administration said it plans to have a test run once a month until the second half of 2017, when all vehicles are to be provided to the three countries.But civic groups attacked what they called as “embarrassing one-time event and a disgrace to South Korean aid that ignores the purpose of aid and international terms.” The project was also called a “step backward in the history of South Korea’s international development assistance.” The group People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) demanded an “immediate end,” while ODA Watch called for the project’s “full-scale reconsideration.” Critics raised a number of questions about Korea Aid’s components, including how providing meals once a month could lower death rates, what use a single ambulance is likely to be, and why development assistance money rather than the government’s promotional budget is being used to promote the Pyeongchang Olympics and K-Pop.Two particular problems were singled out. First is the clear step backward from South Korea’s previous efforts to set up an organized development assistance system following international norms on aid since its 2010 joining of the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) marked its transformation from aid recipient to aid donor. The OECD’s basic principles on international development assistance are laid out in its 2005 Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, which states that mutual accountability and transparency between aid donors and recipients are necessary for the success of cooperation. According to the declaration, aid should be based on the recipient country’s development strategy and be designed to promote its policy initiative and ownership, with transparency a necessary element to ensure and strengthen public support.On that basis, South Korea and other countries and groups involved in aid have strived to improve the principles behind their activities to go beyond “events” and hardware-centered efforts such as building construction and item donations to focus on bolstering “software” within the recipient country’s systems and personnel capabilities.A second criticism is that the Korea Aid “event” was slapped together without undergoing systematic examination. During a confirmation of the 2017 implementation plan for international development assistance at the 26th meeting of the International Development Assistance Committee on May 30, Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said plans had been established to “effectively bolster Korea Aid and other major projects.”But Korea Aid was not included on an agenda circulated to the committee’s non-government members in early May.

Survey shows Sewol survivors and victims’ families still suffering

Survey shows Sewol survivors and victims’ families still suffering

 

#Sewol_tregidy #PTSD #still_suffering

Kwon Mi-hwa, mother of Oh Young-seok, a Danwon High School student who died in the Sewol ferry sinking, wipes away a tear during a press conference in front of Cheongwoon Hyojadong Community Service Center near the Blue House, calling for the Sewol Special Investigative Commission to be strengthened, and condemning the Park Geun-hye government, June 27. The sign she’s holding reads, “No more deaths”. (by Kim Seong-gwang, staff photographer)

Many affected by physical and psychological symptoms related to trauma of sinking incomplete investigation

“Most of all, the family members . . . uh . . . all the parents want to let the children go. Huh. (sighs) I think it’s only after we know why the accident happened . . after when we’ve punished the people responsible . . . and prevented this kind of thing from happening again that the family members . . . uh . . . will let go of our children . . . as free souls.”(Excerpt from an interview with the father of a Danwon High School student who died in the 2014 Sewol ferry sinking)　Over two years have passed since the Sewol ferry tragedy, yet a survey shows the survivors and family members of the victims are still suffering from psychological and physical problems in its wake.According to a draft report acquired of a survey by the special Sewol Investigative Commission on support for victims in the tragedy, the post-traumatic stress incidence rate for family members of Danwon High School students who lost their lives was 56%. The rate was much more severe than the 0.6% annual rate reported for the South Korean public as a whole.Family members were also found to be suffering from insomnia and other sleep disorders (75.4%) and physical stress-related symptoms such as headaches (72.7%).For the survey, in-depth interviews were conducted between January and June for groups among a total of 211 victims of the tragedy, including 145 family members of Danwon students who died in the sinking, 39 surviving students and their family members, and 27 non-student survivors and victim family members. The commission’s survey was the first conducted by a state organization for victims of a major disaster.“The aim was to assess and analyze problem areas and inadequacies in the victim support process in order to develop alternatives,” explained a commission source. The commission released the findings from the survey on July 20 at the Kim Koo Museum and Library in Seoul.The findings show sudden changes to the lives of family members of Danwon high school student victims as a result of the tragedy, including abandonment of jobs and changes in values. While 116 of those surveyed (81.3%) were working before the tragedy, 75 of them (64.6%) reported quitting work after the sinking. 42.6% reported contemplating suicide as a result of grief and subsequent trauma from losing children or siblings, while 4.3% reported actually making an attempt.“Early on after the tragedy, family members held on through will and determination, but as the investigation went on without any clear signs of process, their health has worsened as a result of the feeling of helplessness and doubt,” explained the research team of professor Cho Seon-mi from the Ajou University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation, which examined family members of Danwon student victims.“To heal from trauma, you need to go through stages of recovering stability through trust and restoring social relationships,” the team said. “Learning the truth about the Sewol is inevitably going to be a very important variable.”Survivors also showed difficulty overcoming the shock of the tragedy. Students from Danwon High School showed a particularly strong aversion to use of the term “rescue” during the interview process. In their perception, their survival was the result of an escape rather than a rescue.Surviving students also expressed anger over the Coast Guard’s rescue efforts.“If they’d gotten out the kids who were locked in their rooms, we would have all escaped,” said one.“There were still a lot of kids after me,” said another.“They didn’t go into the boat,” a third said.The research team of Korea University professor Kim Seung-seop, which examined surviving Danwon students and their family members, explained that they “have yet to overcome the shock of the tragedy because of survivors’ guilt.”“A lot of them were also hurt by sensationalist media reports about ‘preferential treatment’ in university admission,” the team said.With Danwon students accounting for the majority of victims, the results also showed that non-student survivors and victim family members felt hurt over the “insincere” attitude from government institutions and a sense of alienation owing to regional differences in support distribution.“We need a central government support system in place so that there aren’t regional differences in support to victims,” said Ewha Womans University professor Yang Ok-kyung, who looked into the question of how to support victims’ families and survivors.By Kim Mi-young, staff reporter

Majority of working migrant wives have limited job security in Korea: research(koreaherald)

Majority of working migrant wives have limited job security in Korea: research

 

#migrant_wives #job_insecurity #discrimination #intersectionality

 

More than half of employed foreign-born migrant wives in Korea work as either temporary or day laborers, while 9.5 percent of them work for free for their Korean in-laws’ businesses here, a study showed on Sunday.

The study, published in the latest edition of academic journal Gender Review, analyzed government data on 226,084 foreign-born women immigrants who married South Korean nationals.

The report found that 52.4 percent of all migrant wives were employed as of 2012, while 84.1 percent of them hoped to continue working or seek employment in the future.

However, most migrant wives who were in work faced a lack of job security, the study showed. While 35 percent of them worked as temporary workers, 18.9 percent of them were involved in day labor — meaning they were hired and paid one day at a time, with no promise to return. Also, 9.5 percent of them were doing unpaid work for their Korean in-laws, such as family farms or businesses.

A group wedding of South Korean men and their foreign-born brides, which was jointly financed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Woori Bank, held earlier in Seoul this month. (Yonhap)

The study showed that 65 percent of all working migrant wives’ monthly salaries ranged from 500,000 won ($439) to 1.5 million won ($1,318). At the same time, 17. 4 percent of them were making 500,000 won or less a month. Only 2.7 percent of them were making 2.5 million won a month or more. The average monthly salary of a university-educated, first-year Korean office worker is 1.9 million won, as of this year.

In terms of occupation type, the largest proportion of them, 30 percent, were engaged in simple labor such as cleaning or delivery. Another 23.9 percent were working in the service sector, followed by 13.6 percent who were factory workers.

Only 163 out of 119,922 working migrant wives were working in managerial positions, accounting for 0.1 percent.

The report also discovered that migrant wives who have a child aged 9 or younger, those who are married to low-earning Korean husbands, those who have experienced discrimination while living in Korea, and those who are from mainland China – excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan – were more likely to seek employment here.

Migrant wives with children aged 9 or younger were 92 percent more likely to be working than those who did not have children but were in the same age group, the report showed. Also, women from Hong Kong and Taiwan were 76 percent less likely to be working than those from mainland China.

Also, wives from Japan, the U.S., Russia, Uzbekistan and Cambodia also had a significantly lower likelihood of participating in the workfoce in Korea than women from mainland China.

Chinese-born, ethnic Korean women from mainland China accounted for the largest proportion of migrant wives by taking up 31.5 percent. One of the reasons behind their high employment rate has to do with their proficiency in the Korean language, researchers noted.

Researchers suggested the government come up with special job-training programs for migrant wives in low-earning households, especially those with young children.

“Language proficiency and education degrees would lead to higher-paying jobs,” the researchers said. “There should be ways for the mothers to get the education they want — while getting a degree may take a long time, it’s better for their career prospects in the long-run — while being able to raise their children with adequate support.”

As of 2012, those from China, including Chinese-born ethnic Koreans, accounted for 55.7 percent of all migrant wives in Korea, followed by those from Vietnam (22.1 percent) and the Philippines (6.3 percent). Almost 63 percent of them were aged 39 or younger, while 79.4 percent of them never attended post-secondary education. As of last year, 74.6 percent of all Korean high school girls enrolled in university.
 

Earthquake occurred just around 50 km from high concentration of nuke plants(hankyoreh)

Earthquake occurred just around 50 km from high concentration of nuke plants

#earthquake #nuclear_safety #Civic_Action_against_nuclear_power #Korea

As government pushes to build more reactors in densely populated area, civic groups seeking tighter safety checks
Capable fault lines and nuclear reactors in Busan, Ulsan, South Gyeongsang. Data: Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co.

The epicenter of the 5.0-magnitude earthquake that occurred in waters off the coast of Ulsan on the evening of July 5 was only 50 or 60 kilometers away from the Kori and Shin Kori and the Wolsong nuclear power complexes, which are the greatest concentration of nuclear power plants in the world. The proximity of the earthquake to these nuclear plants is increasing concerns about the safety of South Korea’s nuclear power industry. Given studies that suggest the Korean Peninsula is vulnerable to earthquakes up to 7.5 in magnitude, there are calls for the nuclear reactor safety standards to be strengthened.

“The earthquake that occurred in waters east of Ulsan on July 5 is believed to have been caused by a 1-kilometer break in a strike-slip fault at a depth of 10 kilometers,” the Korea Meteorological Administration and the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) announced on July 6.

“Earthquakes frequently occur in the waters off Ulsan, but you couldn’t say that this earthquake resulted from specific conditions,” said Seon Chang-guk, KIGAM’s chief of earthquake disaster research.

“For a big earthquake to occur, there has to be a series of smaller earthquakes along a certain fault line. Since we are not seeing a linear alignment in the earthquakes occurring around the epicenter, this should not be taken as a sign of a bigger earthquake,” said Ji Heon-cheol, chief of KIGAM’s seismic research center.

But given repeated studies showing that the strongest earthquake that can occur on the Korean Peninsula would have a magnitude of 7.5, the possibility of a major earthquake cannot be ruled out.

In 2001, Kim Seong-gyun, professor emeritus at Chonnam National University, estimated that the greatest possible earthquake on the Korean Peninsula would have a magnitude of 7.14±0.34. In 2014, Hong Tae-gyeong, a professor of earth system science at Yonsei University, made an estimate of 7.45±0.04.

“Since Korea is located where the neighboring tectonic plates are pushing along an east-west axis, there have always been a large number of capable faults,” said Oh Chang-hwan, a professor of earth and environmental science at Chonbuk National University. “It takes longer for the Eurasian Plate to build up energy than in Japan, but that doesn‘t mean that a large earthquake couldn’t occur.”

Studies show that about 60 capable faults are distributed around Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongju – which also happens to be where a total of 16 nuclear reactors are concentrated (including reactors that are planned but not yet built).

The epicenter of the earthquake that just occurred near Ulsan is 51 kilometers away from the Wolsong nuclear plant, where six nuclear reactors and a waste disposal facility are in operation. The epicenter is also 65 kilometers from the Kori and Shin Kori nuclear power complexes, where six nuclear reactors (including Kori No. 1) are currently running and where four more reactors are supposed to be built.

There are only 11 sites (6%) in the world where six or more nuclear reactors are clustered together, and all of South Korea‘s nuclear reactors are located in this area.

“These nuclear reactors, which are located in the part of the Korean Peninsula with the most frequent earthquakes and the greatest distribution of capable faults, are designed to withstand earthquakes up to the 6.5- to 6.9-magnitude range. But that’s 20 to 30 times weaker than the seismic energy in a 7.5-magnitude earthquake, which is the greatest expected magnitude,” said Yang-Lee Won-yeong, who leads the energy and climate team at the Korean Federation for Environmental Movement.

A team of researchers from the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology published an article in the June issue of “Geosciences Journal” contending that the Ilgwang Fault, located near the Shin Kori reactor, is connected to a capable fault off the coast of Busan, which means that it might be a large-scale capable fault.

“The earthquake-proof values refer to the Richter-scale magnitude that the reactors are designed to withstand assuming that the earthquake occurs 10km immediately below them. Considering that there is virtually no chance of an earthquake occurring immediately below the reactors, the current earthquake-proof design is at a very high level,” said Cho Seok-jin, press liaison with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP).

On Wednesday, civic groups from the Busan and Ulsan areas called for a complete and thorough assessment of the safety of nuclear plants and demanded that the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission revoke its approval for plans to build Reactors No. 5 and No. 6 at the Shin Kori complex in Eulju County, part of the Ulsan metropolitan area.

“The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission and the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety either excluded capable faults from the earthquake risk assessment or failed to even investigate them when they allowed Wolsong No. 1 to be restarted and when they approved the construction of Shin Kori No. 5 and No. 6,” said two civic groups called Busan Civic Solidarity Against Nuclear Power and Ulsan Joint Civic Action Against Nuclear Power.

Rep. Kim Jong-hun and Rep. Yun Jong-oh, independent lawmakers who represent Ulsan in the National Assembly, also issued a joint statement in which they demanded that a detailed investigation of undersea faults be carried out immediately. “Geologists believe that this earthquake occurred on the Tsushima-Goto Fault, which is an capable fault, and that a bigger earthquake could occur there,” the two lawmakers said.

By Lee Keun-young, senior staff writer, Kim Kyu-won, staff reporter, Kim Young-dong and Sin Dong-myeong, Ulsan correspondents

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

South Koreans no longer count on upward mobility for their children(hankyoreh)

South Koreans no longer count on upward mobility for their children

#social_mobility #inequality #Korea #멍멍꿀꿀

Long-term survey finds growing pessimism about hard work as a way of improving social status across generations
Comparison of views on inter and intra-generational social mobility. Respondents with optimistic views (Unit: %)

The results of recent research show that most members of South Korean society do not expect themselves or their children’s generation to be able to raise their social status.

Statistics Korea collected and analyzed data from more than 200,000 people surveyed in a study conducted from 1999 to 2015. The study is particularly noteworthy as a rare academic attempt to read society’s “awareness of possibilities” by means of long-term time series data. In a paper titled “South Koreans’ Thinking about Upward Mobility: Focusing on the Effects of Age, Period, and Cohorts,” presented jointly at a conference held by the Korean Sociological Association, Lee Wang-won, a researcher at Korea University’s Center for Applied Cultural Sciences, and Kim Moon-jo, professor emeritus of sociology, summarized their findings by saying, “Everywhere in South Korean society we find that people believe that no matter how hard an individual works, he cannot better his social status, and furthermore, neither will his children.”

The research team used the results of the survey of people’s thinking about intergenerational and intragenerational upward mobility. The questionnaire used included such queries as: “Is it possible for a member of our society to raise his or her socio-economic status by working hard at it?” “To what degree do you think the next generation can raise its socio-economic status to a level higher than that of the parents’ generation?” The first question focuses on the effectiveness of individual effort, while the second seeks to learn what expectations respondents have for changes is the distribution of resources. The researchers said, “These items are important because they show the individual’s awareness of and interpretation of social structure and milieu.” Of the data, the research team analyzed a sample of 224,715 respondents aged 18 to 80.

The 15-year average of those who thought that intragenerational upward mobility is possible was 29.4 percent, meaning that since 1999, only about one in three South Koreans have been optimistic about that possibility, while more than two-thirds did not believe it was possible. There was little change in these attitudes over the 15-year period. In terms of age groups, respondents in their early 20s who were still in university or had just graduated, and were thus less worldly-wise, were the most optimistic, whereas the number of those with a positive attitude about upward mobility decreased with age.

On the other hand, the 15-year average of those who thought that intergenerational upward mobility is possible was a considerably higher 40.6 percent. The researchers say, “This means that about 40 percent of Koreans, even after the financial crisis of 1997, believed that their children would be able to reach a higher status than they had.” The percentage of respondents who said their children would be better off reached a peak of 48 percent in 2009, right after the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008, but afterwards the figure dropped steeply, falling to 32 percent in 2015, meaning that only about a third of Koreans think the next generation will be better off than themselves.

The difference in expectations for intragenerational versus intergenerational upward mobility has diminished over time, and the two figures are now converging. This gradual convergence began in 2006 and in recent years the fluctuations in the two trends have been similar, with both of them dropping continuously since 2008. This seems to indicate that even those whose attitude about their children’s generation had been positive right after the financial crisis have come to have greater doubts.

The researchers say, “We can infer that people lost faith in the possibility of upward mobility during the long slump that came after the initial upbeat outlook for the economy after the 2008 crisis.”

The researchers are particularly concerned about today’s youth, who pessimistically talk of abandoning their ambition for many things and even resigning themselves to remaining at the level of their parents’ generation. As a frustrated, depressed generation that has lost hope for the future, they need to “think deeply about the ill effect their negative attitude about upward mobility is having on South Korean society.” If all means of raising one’s social status have been obliterated from South Korean society, we need to ask ourselves whether this might not mean that we have already set out an a path that leads back to feudalism. We should think deeply about what could await us at the end of such a path.

By Kang Hee-cheol, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

A ‘bloody’ performance against the high price of sanitary pads(Hankyoreh)

A ‘bloody’ performance against the high price of sanitary pads(Hankyoreh)

#sanitary_pad_performance #revolting_sanitary_pad? #gender_equity

 
Sanitary pads smeared with paint the color of blood were put up on the street near the tourist district of Insadong in Seoul, by women who organized online to decry the high price of sanitary pads in South Korea, July 3. (by Kim Seong-gwang, staff photographer)

Female activists strike out at notion that menstruation is something they must hide or be ashamed of

On July 3, sanitary pads smeared with paint the color of blood paint were put up on the street near the tourist district of Insadong in Seoul, alongside banners with slogans such as, “Sanitary pads are a necessity for half the population, so the government ought to institute price controls,” said one. “If pregnancy and childbirth are commendable, why should menstruation be a shameful deed that has to be concealed?” said another.Next to the sanitary pads were receipts that showed sanitary pads had been purchased for 12,600 won (US$10.96) and 9,900 won (US$8.61).Women who are opposed to the price of sanitary pads increasing on the grounds that they are an essential item for women organized a demonstration on Sunday that employed the techniques of performance art.

A chart put up on the street near the tourist district of Insadong in Seoul listing the per unit prices of sanitary pads in various countries, July 3. South Korea is at the top, with a per unit per of 331 won (28 cents), higher than Japan and the US (both 181 won), Canada (202 won) and Denmark (156 won). (by Kim Seong-gwang, staff photographer)

The performance on Sunday was put on by a group of women who responded to a suggestion made by one social media user who posted the hashtag “let’s hang up sanitary pads.”“Between 2010 and 2015, consumer prices have gone up by 9.81%, but the price of sanitary pads has increased by 24.59%,” said the person who came up with the idea of the performance. This person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, pointed out that South Korean sanitary pads cost between 50% and 100% more than their equivalents in countries like Japan, France and Denmark.“During the same period, the price of pulp, the main ingredient of sanitary pads, has fallen by 29.6%, and the price of felt has fallen by 7.6%. Companies shouldn’t be charging unfair prices because of menstruation, which women didn’t choose and can’t avoid,” this person said.The reason that the group chose the somewhat provocative idea of putting sanitary pads on the wall for their demonstration was to send the message that “menstruation is an ordinary human physiological function that we don’t need to hide or to feel ashamed of.”After a debate about the price of sanitary pads was ignited by the story of a teenager who had to use an insole during her period because sanitary pads were too expensive, a lawmaker in a local legislature remarked that it was revolting to use the word “sanitary pad” in public.“Even though I knew there was nothing shameful about my period, I used to hide my sanitary pads and call it ’that time of the month,‘” said one of the women who took part in the demonstration as she attached a sanitary pad painted red to the wall.By Bang Jun-ho, staff reporter

Experts group to help medical institutions go abroad

Experts group to help medical institutions go abroad

#Korea_health_industry #GHKOL_experts

When did the medical institutions become “industry” to go abroad? And who is these experts?

 

State health agencies said Friday they have launched a group of specialists to effectively assist South Korea’s medical institutions get established in foreign countries.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Health industry Development Institute (KHIDI) are working together in operating the “Global Healthcare Key Opinion Leaders” (GHKOL) and has selected 47 members for the group that will provide consultations on legal, commercial and financial matters specific to individual countries, officials said. The members, formally appointed on Friday, organized a session on China on the same day, briefing the participants on strategies and the latest trends in China’s health care industry.

Institutions planning to expand overseas can apply for the group’s assistance, and consulting fees will be paid for by KHIDI.

“The specialist members of GHKOL will ease the burdens of medical institutions who want to go overseas, and at the same time help smaller and regionally based institutions actively seek expansion in other countries,” the health ministry said. (Yonhap)